Power distance and collectivist/individualist strategies in alcohol warnings: Effects by gender and ethnicity

This research examined the responses of 73 Mexican American and Angle young adults to four televised drinking-and-driving warnings. Warnings were mani pulated into collectivist (emphasizing risks to family and friends) and ind ividualist (emphasizing risks to self) appeals, and into high and low power distance appeals by attributing or net attributing warnings to the Surgeon General. Females rated the collectivist warnings, and males the individual ist warnings, more believable. Respondents on average responded to the coll ectivist warnings most positively, regardless of gender or ethnicity. Anglo s rated warnings without the Surgeon General as the source more believable than warnings with the Surgeon General as the source; the opposite was true for Latinos. Other interactions were also found.